Demolition of Kyme Museum stopped

İZMİR - Cihan News Agency

The demolition of Kyme Archaeology Museum has been canceled and restoration work will start soon. DHA photo

The demolition and closure of the Kyme Archaeology Museum and Excavation House in İzmir’s Aliağa district, which municipal authorities have said would be replaced with a new building constructed on the present site, has been stopped by the Culture and Tourism Ministry.

The Movement of the Protection and Support of Aliağa Archaeology Museum activists had filed a criminal complaint and organized demonstrations to prevent the closure of the museum. Stating reports that said the building was not safe were false, the activists have finally reached their goal.

‘An illegal action’
The movement’s spokesperson, Ahmet Tuncay Karaçorlu, said their voice had been heard and the ministry stopped the transfer of the artefacts from the museum. He said the report on the unsafe conditions of the museum building was false, adding, “The most evident proof is a resistance report that Turkish and Italian experts gave on the building years ago. It is illegal to ignore this report and close the museum. The museum has been already closed to visitors for 11 years. We will open it as soon as possible,” he said.

He said the museum building and its surrounding environment had been neglected for years and they would begin a cleaning and restoration campaign.